Cuomo had proposed to take $100 million in “capital projects” funding that was appropriated in prior years for legislators and re-direct it for spending by regional economic development councils he hopes to set up. State authorities currently bond for the money on a project-by-project basis after legislators select its destination. Senate Republicans opposed Cuomo’s re-direction of their capital projects appropriations because there were no details about the councils, they said. This funding mechanism has been used to fund the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering attached to the University at Albany as well as a room for a train museum and scoreboards at high schools.

“There are commitments outstanding against it,” Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, D-Manhattan, said. “The governor initially thought it was free money, but these are commitments made over the years. We’ve made economic development projects, there’s the Carrier project in Syracuse, there’s a project the governor helped them get some more money to do in Albany two weeks ago…There’s a whole pile.”

Sen. Jim Alesi, a Perinton Republican who chairs his chamber’s economic development committee, offered similar reasoning.

“We are keeping some control over it,” Alesi said. “In many cases, money was already targeted for specific use, but not formally bonded, so that would have taken away from the intent to fund economic development projects that already were beyond the conceptual stage. It could have actually killed some projects; I don’t think that was the governor’s intent.”

“The project is thought of as being too costly, and it’s being scrapped for the time being,” said Morris Peters, a spokesman for the Division of the Budget.

In addition, Peters said, there will be $70 million of tax credits over which the councils will have jurisdiction. They will be formed by an as-yet-issued executive order, he said. Alesi and Assemblyman Peter Rivera, D-Bronx, described them as “advisory,” and said Lt. Gov. Bob Duffy would have ultimate control over how funds were allocated.

There are no new member items — unlike the capital projects, these are cash appropriations, not borrowing — in this year’s budget, but Cuomo has backed away from a proposal to close down the member item account in September. It has about $136 million in it. Cuomo will not add $85 million that was scheduled. But items promised in previous years can continue to trickle out, Peters said. Like The Dude, the account will abide in perpetuity.

“The governor has said this is a transparent budget and has said all spending should be done through the normal budget process,” Peters said. “The reality that there are no new member items speaks to those goals.”